


cauldron bubble

by EzzyDean



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Accidental Baby Acquisition, Alternate Universe - Magic, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-07
Updated: 2021-02-07
Packaged: 2021-03-12 19:48:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,717
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29266008
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EzzyDean/pseuds/EzzyDean
Summary: Daichi hands over the medallion and takes the baby.  He’s a parent.  He, the man who just a few weeks ago nearly set fire to his cabin because he got distracted by the crows outside the window, is a parent.  Is responsible for a tiny little human.  Holy shit.  Not just him.  He and Koutarou.  He loves the man dearly but Koutarou is even more of a disaster than Daichi is.They’re both responsible for a baby.Daichi looks up at Asahi in a panic that Asahi, the jerk of a friend he is, laughs when he catches sight of Daichi’s face.
Relationships: Bokuto Koutarou/Sawamura Daichi
Comments: 1
Kudos: 32





	cauldron bubble

The cauldron in the fireplace rattles and Daichi gives it an unimpressed stare.

“Look,” he says as it shudders and clanks against its stand, “I don’t like doing my job sometimes either. But do you see me wiggling and grumbling about it? No. Just calm down okay?”

The cauldron rattles again and then goes still. Daichi has just enough time to smile in relief at the quiet before the contents suddenly start bubbling over the top of the cauldron.

“Shit,” he sighs. Foam starts oozing down the side of the cauldron and dripping into the fire, causing it to spit and crackle menacingly. “Well that’s not good.”

He grabs a poker from next to the fireplace and taps at the cauldron cautiously. It’s not supposed to do this. Nothing he put into the cauldron should make it do this. Why is it doing this? Maybe he shouldn’t have gotten a used cauldron. But the new ones are so expensive and after already having to replace most of his ingredients, two pairs of enchanted gloves, and his favorite formal scarf in the last two weeks he had been running a little short on funds.

The fire goes out with a puff of smoke and Daichi eyes the cauldron warily. If it explodes it’ll probably take out his entire fireplace. Which would suck. Because he does not have the budget for extensive home repairs right now. Clearly. Seeing as how he’s using a discounted, pre-owned, gently used cauldron that’s probably actually some cursed object of some kind. Which would actually pretty much be par for the course in terms of how his life has been going these last few months.

The cauldron rattles.

“I don’t think it’s supposed to do that.” Daichi whirls at the voice in his ear, heart thumping wildly in his chest and fire poker raised like a weapon. A warm hand catches his wrist before he can do any damage with said poker. Unfortunately.

“Koutarou how many times have I told you not to sneak up on me like that?”

Koutarou tilts his head and grins. “But it’s just how I am. I sneak. I’m a sneaky sneak.”

“You’re a giant pain in my—”

The cauldron hits the floor with a bang and they watch as it rolls across the floor towards them. It rolls to a wobbly stop a few steps away and they glance at each other. Daichi taps the cauldron again with the fire poker in his hand. Something inside the cauldron taps back.

“What did you put in there?” Koutarou whines in his ear.

“Nothing that should be able to do that.”

The cauldron wobbles again and Daichi raises the fire poker defensively. The cauldron tips over and a bundle of blankets tumbles out of it. A wriggling bundle of blankets. Daichi and Koutarou shuffle backwards and the bundle of blankets wriggles towards them. They shuffle again and the blankets wriggle faster. Koutarou’s back hits the wall and Daichi’s back hits Koutarou and the blankets wriggle and wriggle and wriggle and—

“Is that a baby?” Koutarou peers over Daichi’s shoulder curiously. “Why did you put a baby in your cauldron?”

“I did not put a baby in my cauldron.”

“Then why is there a baby in your cauldron?”

The baby in question crawls towards them and pats questioningly at Daichi’s foot.

“I don’t know. Nothing I put in there should have produced a baby.”

The baby peers up at them and giggles.

“Then where did it come from?”

“I. Don’t. Know.” The baby blinks at his irritated tone and it’s chin starts to wobble and Daichi sucks in a sharp breath. “No no no,” he hushes as he crouches down. “It’s okay. I’m not upset with you at all.” The baby blinks some more and reaches up towards Daichi. It coos happily when Daichi picks it up and stands. “See. It’s okay.”

“You’re a natural,” Koutarou says. He reaches over Daichi’s shoulder and taps gently at the baby’s nose. The baby giggles and then sneezes out a cloud of sparkles. Then it giggles at the sparkles. It reaches for them and Daichi spots something shiny hanging from it’s tiny neck.

He and Koutarou both reach for it, fingers brushing the warm surface. He should have known better. After all one of the first rules they’re taught is not to touch strange objects.

And yet.

Warmth sweeps through him as the magic in the medallion searches out his own and settles into place. The baby in his arms giggles and pats at his arms.

“Um,” Koutarou mutters. “Do we have to tell Akaashi? Cause I think he might get mad at me. I’m not sure what we just did but I definitely feel like it’s something Akaashi will scold me for.”

“I won’t tell Akaashi so long as you don’t tell Suga.”

“Deal.”

—

Daichi adjusts the bundle slung across his chest and knocks for a third time.

“Asahi,” he calls softly. “I know you’re home. Please let me in.”

“I know that tone,” Asahi calls back, just as soft. “You did something and want to drag me into it.”

“Come on Asahi.” He doesn’t beg. But he might whine a little bit. Which apparently works because Asahi’s door swings open and Daichi steps inside.

Asahi barely even glances up from the fabric spread across his table as Daichi pads into his workroom. Daichi hovers in the door, uncertain if his magic would disturb whatever Asahi is working on. He only needed to make the mistake of messing up Asahi’s work once to learn his lesson. So he just shifts from side to side, slowly rocking the bundle against his chest, and watches Asahi work. The gentle ebb and flow of Asahi’s magic as he turns the fabric piles into a really intricate bag soothes Daichi. Sometimes he forgets, in the chaos of loving Koutarou, just how soft other people’s magic can be.

Asahi finally finishes the bag and pushes himself up from the table.

“What did you do?”

“Okay you can’t tell Suga.”

Asahi narrows his eyes. “I won’t go running to him. But if he asks me I’m not going to lie to him. Not even for you Daichi.”

“That’s fair.” Daichi gestures out of the room and Asahi follows him. “So. Here’s the thing.” He explains what had happened, from the used cauldron right up to the magic of the medallion washing over him and Koutarou, and Asahi just listens quietly, gaze flickering down to the bundle against Daichi’s chest a few times.

“Okay,” Asahi says slowly. “So you used this pre-owned cauldron and somehow summoned a baby and then you and Koutarou both touched the mysterious medallion around it’s neck and felt some kind of, I’m guessing, binding magic lock into place around you three.”

Daichi grins sheepishly. “Yeah. That about sums it up.”

“And you don’t want to tell Suga.”

“No. I do not.”

“And you want me to do what?”

“Help me figure out if it’s just a human baby or if it’s, you know, extra magicky?” Daichi continues before Asahi can even open his mouth. “And yes I know that Suga would probably be a better choice but Suga is still kind of upset with me over the whole eye of newt Incident and I really don’t want to risk him trying to actually, literally, turn me into a sentient mushroom like he keeps threatening to do. So please help me?”

Asahi stares at Daichi long enough that Daichi starts to squirm.

Asahi groans. “Give me the baby.”

“Thank you,” Daichi sighs. “Thank you.”

He hands over the baby and watches as it coos and grabs at Asahi’s long hair, immediately trying to shove the strands into its mouth. Asahi laughs softly and gently pries his hair free, giving the baby his finger to gnaw on instead. He hums softly as his magic fills the air around them all. Daichi closes his eyes and lets the magic wash over him.

“Congratulations,” Asahi eventually says. Daichi pries his eyes open. “You and Koutarou are the proud parents of a baby human.”

“Parents?”

“The magic of the medallion was a sort of adoption bind. This little guy’s magic sees you two as his caregivers and will continue to do so until he is of age or is claimed by his biological family.” Asahi smiles down at the baby. “Do you have the medallion on you?”

Daichi hands over the medallion and takes the baby. He’s a parent. He, the man who just a few weeks ago nearly set fire to his cabin because he got distracted by the crows outside the window, is a parent. Is responsible for a tiny little human. Holy shit. Not just him. He and Koutarou. He loves the man dearly but Koutarou is even more of a disaster than Daichi is.

They’re both responsible for a baby.

Daichi looks up at Asahi in a panic that Asahi, the jerk of a friend he is, laughs when he catches sight of Daichi’s face.

“Well at least you don’t have to name him. According to the medallion he’s called Kei.”

—

Daichi watches Kei crawl across the floor, chasing the colorful reflections of the wind chime hanging up outside the window. He and Koutarou had tried childproofing his cabin once they realized Kei would be with them for awhile. They had started softening corners and locking drawers and enchanting the nooks and crannies. It had all been going well until they turned around and found Kei suddenly inside the glass front cabinet that Daichi stored his ingredients in that had been — and still was — locked. Then a few minutes later Kei was sitting in Daichi’s cauldron on top of the workbench. After that he and Koutarou had decided that childproofing the cabin was probably a bit of a waste of time with whatever magic Kei seemed to have and it wasn’t like Daichi really got up to anything too wild or left any dangerous tomes lying around that just anyone could stumble over and accidentally read and summon a demon like some of his friends were wont to do.

Kei seems content to crawl around and pat at the colors on the floor for the time being so Daichi spreads out a pile of papers on his table and starts skimming through them. He’s got three different research projects going on that he needs to start getting sorted out and now is the perfect time in his mind. It’s not like he’s about to start wandering around the woods or into town with some random baby that he kind of maybe somehow summoned in his pre-owned cauldron. He could do without a random kidnapping charge on his record or dealing with a hundred questions about where he got a baby all of a sudden thanks very much.

He pauses in the middle of leafing through a small pile of notes on enchanted toadstools in the western part of the woods and wonders if maybe he should get hold of Suga even though he already got the info he needed out of Asahi. Suga’s a hunter. He knows things. Maybe he would know where the baby came from if nothing else.

“Hey babe,” Koutarou says, stepping out of the shadows in the corner. Daichi throws the large spellbook he’s been referencing at Koutarou on instinct. Koutarou, of course, catches it easily.

“Bokuto,” Daichi hisses.

“I’m home?” Kei makes a happy noise and crawls towards them as Koutarou kisses Daichi’s cheek in greeting. “How are my two favorite guys doing?”

“I don’t know. How are Kuroo and Akaashi doing today?”

“Ouch.” Koutarou gives him a betrayed pout as he picks Kei up and cuddles him to his chest. It shouldn’t be endearing at all but it is. It really, really is and Daichi is a weak, weak man when it comes to Bokuto Koutarou and, apparently, little baby Kei in his arms. “That’s harsh.”

Daichi rolls his eyes but tells Koutarou about their day.

—

Daichi doesn’t mean to not tell most of his friends about the baby. Really he doesn’t. But he was already kind of a hermit before the whole pre-owned cauldron baby summoning thing and his cabin is really deep into the woods. Then Kei came along and, really, Daichi felt it was better for his sanity to not have to explain to a mob of angry townspeople that he suddenly had a baby in his care and had no idea how that happened. So he just… stays home. He takes on a lot of research projects and writes tome after tome on bizarre theories and niche arcane magic. He visits with Asahi and Kuroo through various spells and channels. He throws things when Koutarou appears out of thin air like the sneaky jerk he is and before he knows it over two years have passed.

Koutarou can never stay for too incredibly long. But that’s okay because Daichi knows that no matter how soon Koutarou has to leave he will always come back to Daichi. Well. Daichi and Kei now.

He hears Kei and Koutarou laughing and he smiles to himself. Nothing had been missing or wrong before but the moment Kei came into their lives something had clicked into place, a puzzle piece they had never realized there was room for.

Small thuds sound through the cabin and Daichi turns in time to watch Kei come running into the room, nimble as any three year old can be, and spot him.

“Oh no!” Kei yells. “’tarou’s coming!”

“He is?” Daichi gasps in concern. “Do we need to hide?”

Kei shakes his head but makes a beeline for Daichi, crawling into his lap and burying his face against Daichi’s neck.

“You keep me safe.”

Daichi’s chest tightens with emotion. “Of course I will,” he whispers. “I’ll always keep you safe.”

“Good.” Kei wriggles closer when they hear Koutarou’s heavy footsteps approaching. Daichi knows it’s all for show — Koutarou can be completely silent when he chooses to be after all — but he plays it up for Kei’s benefit. He gasps quietly and hugs Kei tighter. He holds his breath when Koutarou’s footsteps stop outside his door.

He yelps and kicks Koutarou’s shin when he suddenly appears next to them out of thin air instead of coming through the door.

“Koutarou,” he hisses.

Koutarou and Kei laugh in unison and Daichi groans when he realizes he’d just been set up.

“Got you,” Kei crows happily, face still smushed into Daichi’s neck.

“Got you,” Koutarou teases, pressing a kiss to Daichi’s cheek in apology.

After a moment Daichi turns his head and Koutarou obliges his silent request and kisses his lips softly. “Just what are you teaching our son,” he mutters against Koutarou’s lips.

“How to be an amazing sneaky sneak like his dad. Just like you’ll teach him to be an amazing researcher who blows stuff up once we get him reading.” Koutarou kisses him again. “Between you and me we’ll make our boy unstoppable.”

Daichi kisses Koutarou softly, gently, nothing more than expressing their love for each other, until Kei starts squirming.

“Before we make him truly unstoppable I think he needs a snack.” Kei stills for a moment and then squirms harder. “How does some strawberry cake sound Kei?”

“Please!” Kei slides off Daichi’s lap and flies out of the room as fast as he can run. “Cake! Please!”

“You spoil him,” Koutarou murmurs against Daichi’s lips.

“So do you,” Daichi murmurs back.

“No kiss!” They break apart and share a laugh when they look to the door and see Kei peering in with a pout. “Cake please!”

—

Kei is just short of five years old the first time Daichi catches him trying to read one of his spellbooks. He promptly takes it away and gives Kei something closer to his skill level. 

(A week later Kei has found the spellbook again and nothing Daichi does convinces him to return it.)

—

Kei is seven when he and Koutarou shuffle into the cabin, both covered in vines and leaves and a mysterious ooze that Daichi chooses not to recognize. Koutarou gives Daichi a brilliant grin that, after a moment, Kei mimics with startling accuracy. 

“We finished the contract,” they both say cheerfully and Daichi’s heart twists wickedly in his chest.

—

Kei is eight and a half when he narrows his eyes in concentration and Daichi’s kitchen window shatters into thousands of pieces.

“Oh,” Kei says, eyes wide and surprised. “I think I read it wrong.”

Daichi peers over Kei’s shoulder and shakes his head. “I think we need to get you glasses.”

—

Kei is just a little over nine when he stares up at the starry sky through the trees and asks Daichi, “Why are you so sad sometimes? Who are you missing?”

Daichi swallows hard, heart suddenly trying to climb up his throat, and pulls Kei into his lap. Kei struggles playfully but sinks happily into Daichi’s hug a moment later.

“An old friend,” Daichi answers truthfully. “I haven’t seen him in a long time. Sometimes it feels like he just vanished without a trace.”

Kei nods and twists so he can look into Daichi’s eyes. For a moment Daichi feels like he’s looking into the eyes of someone much, much older. Then Kei blinks and grins and Daichi is looking into the face of a nine year old again.

“I’m sure you’ll see him again soon. Nobody really ever vanishes.”

—

Daichi can hear something rattling and he glances around the cabin, trying to place the noise. The noise gets louder and he stands cautiously. The last time he heard something like this a baby had popped out of a cauldron. He eyes the fireplace warily but he had replaced that pre-owned cauldron years ago with a brand new, never used one and shoved the pre-owned monstrosity in a cupboard.

Kei steps into the cabin and hangs up his jacket and the rattling gets even louder. He looks up, golden eyes flashing behind his glasses in the early morning light, and frowns.

“What is that?”

He’s eleven years old and nearly as tall as Daichi with a sharp mind and even sharper tongue and Daichi couldn’t be prouder of him. Especially in moments like these when the rattling grows so loud the cupboards start shaking and Kei simply raises his brows and shifts himself into a stance Daichi knows Koutarou had taught him. Easy to defend himself or launch an attack if needed.

“I’m not sure,” Daichi says loudly, trying to talk over the rattling. “Let’s find out.”

It’s, obviously, the cupboard with the damned cauldron in it and Daichi has enough time to wonder just why he hasn’t gotten rid of it yet before the cauldron explodes in a cloud of smoke and dust and shadows and broken shards flying at him. The shards bounce harmlessly off the shield Kei throws up as he steps in front of Daichi and Daichi waves away the smoke and dust.

“Was that—?”

“Yeah,” Daichi answers. “Your cauldron.”

They had never lied to Kei about the cauldron, about how they got him, about how his magic adopted them. And he had accepted it with the grace of a child, curious but never overly worried about it. Now Daichi wonders if maybe they all should have been a little more worried, a little more proactive in finding out about the cauldron and the baby that had crawled out of it.

A knock sounds at the door and they share a cautious look. When they don’t immediately react there’s more knocking, louder and more insistent, and Daichi sighs. It’s been over a decade but he recognizes that knock. He gestures for Kei to stay in the kitchen, out of sight, and makes his was towards the door.

“Come in Suga,” he calls out. “The door is always unlocked for you. You know that.”

The door swings open and Suga stands in the doorway, leaves swirling around his feet noisily.

“Do I?” Suga asks. “It seems there’s a lot I don’t know about you Daichi. Like the fact that you and Bokuto have a child.”

Daichi laughs awkwardly. “Yeah. About that—”

Suga shakes his head and raises his hand, cutting Daichi off.

“About eleven years old. Golden eyes. Slightly curly blond hair. Probably tall for his age.” Daichi glances over his shoulder but Kei is still tucked out of sight. He turns back to Suga. “Fairly pale skin, sunburns easily. Magic that has the potential to overpower even yours. Sound about right?”

“Um.”

The leaves are still swirling around Suga’s feet so Daichi doesn’t step any closer. Suga has never hurt him and he doesn’t think he ever would. But it’s been ten years since they saw each other and Suga looks really, really irritated with Daichi.

“You magicked a baby out of a cauldron Daichi!”

“I didn’t mean to!” Suga glares at him and Daichi makes a helpless gesture. “He just kind of appeared! How do you know all this anyway?”

Suga sighs heavily, like the entire world is on his shoulders and he’s disappointed in everything everywhere ever, and steps into the cabin. Standing behind him is Kei. No. It’s a young man who looks a lot like Kei. He’s got the same chin and nose and eyes, though his are a little darker than Kei’s. His hair isn’t quite as unruly as Kei’s but it’s the same pale blond color.

“This is Akiteru,” Suga explains. “He came to me about six months ago, not long after he turned sixteen. Now that he’s of age with his magic and on his own he asked me to help him find his little brother.”

There’s a shuffling noise behind him and Akiteru’s eyes widen as Kei steps out of the kitchen and stops at Daichi’s side. Daichi pulls Kei into a side hug and can feel the way he trembles ever so slightly. He meets Suga’s eyes and—

Koutarou steps into existence at Daichi’s other side, already talking.

“You’ll never believe what’s— Oh. Suga. Hi.” Suga’s eyes narrow. “Shit.”

The bits and pieces of the cauldron scattered around the kitchen begin to rattle and clank against the floor behind him and Daichi braces himself for whatever is going to happen next.

**Author's Note:**

> feel free to, as always, come yell at me over on [tumblr](http://ezzydean.tumblr.com/)


End file.
